This case study describes how the Swedish Institute and VisitSweden changed the way that tourism was promoted. View Summary

This case study describes how the Swedish Institute and VisitSweden changed the way that tourism was promoted.

Sweden was keen to promote its value-based society and to show there was more to the country than meatballs, blondes and snow.

To achieve this, the tourist authority handed over its official Twitter account to its citizens, one of whom each week would paint a different picture of the country, escalating a planned short-term campaign into a 3-year campaign so far.

This was picked up on by major news channels and resulted in PR value of $40+ million whilst gaining a widespread online following.

2

Dubai Police: The Supercop Cars

Includes video content

Recommended by Warc editors

Trends

Best Practice

Tahaab Rais, Warc Prize for Social Strategy, Entrant, 2015

This case study describes how Dubai's image was boosted by its police force being given a fleet of supercars. View Summary

This case study describes how Dubai's image was boosted by its police force being given a fleet of supercars.

Dubai's high levels of traffic violations, along with its recent real estate and debt crises had affected international perceptions.

The Dubai Police were chosen to strengthen Dubai's international brand image: they wanted to be seen as a modern crime-fighting unit and reduce road-rage violations.

The world's first supercop cars with their striking design were introduced and promoted primarily through social media.

Dubai Police became a world-famous tourist attraction with millions of dollars in earned media and, most importantly, traffic violations in Dubai reduced by 5.3%.

This case study describes how the Philippine Department of Tourism used social media to encourage visitors to come back to the country after natural disaster. View Summary

This case study describes how the Philippine Department of Tourism used social media to encourage visitors to come back to the country after natural disaster.

In 2013, Haiyan - recorded history's most powerful typhoon - hit the Philippines, resulting in a tragic death toll and widespread damage; it also damaged tourism as people became concerned about conditions.

As such, just one month after the typhoon's passing, the Philippine Department of Tourism set out to develop a campaign to signal that the country was open for tourism.

Utilising Filipinos, a massive social-media effort was launched to deliver a resounding message of gratitude to the world, thanking people for their assistance during the typhoon and inviting them to visit once again.

The campaign was covered by over 20,000 international media outlets, generating impressions worth double the initial campaign spend; three months after the campaign, the Department of Tourism recorded a 1.71% increase in tourism arrivals, and finished the year with a 10% growth in inbound tourism earnings.

4

Historic Scotland: Using the latest technology to optimise a historic sales process

This case study demonstrates how the launch of a new app helped Historic Scotland, an organisation looking after hundreds of historic castles and landmarks, reduce a lengthy selling process to ten minutes. View Summary

This case study demonstrates how the launch of a new app helped Historic Scotland, an organisation looking after hundreds of historic castles and landmarks, reduce a lengthy selling process to ten minutes.

It is the role of the Sales Team to meet with prospective customers all over the globe and encourage them to bring visitors to the Historic Scotland sites.

Insight showed that getting information to a prospect quickly helped convert them into a customer - a fit-for-purpose, portable option was needed to use at international meetings.

An app was created which catered for distinct audiences with distinct sections of content, each establishing its own look and feel, with bespoke PDF brochures being created within minutes.

The project achieved all its defined objectives by providing a more engaging elevator pitch for sales staff at events and enhancing the opportunity to sell directly.

This case study explains how Dubai Police introduced a fleet of supercars to help raise Dubai's profile and reduce the amount of traffic offences. View Summary

This case study explains how Dubai Police introduced a fleet of supercars to help raise Dubai's profile and reduce the amount of traffic offences.

Dubai is known internationally for its tallest, its biggest and its fastest â€“ but on the downside, it is also known for one of the highest rates of traffic violations, and its real estate and debt crises.

Dubai Police was chosen to strengthen Dubai's international brand image, seeking to be seen as a modern crime-fighting unit and reduce road rage violations.

It introduced the world's first Supercop Cars: super-powered, super-fast and super-cool, promoted primarily through social media, the cars had a striking design, stylish new colours and an exclusive Arabic font.

The cars took over Dubai, and Dubai Police became world famous, with millions of dollars in earned media as it was featured across popular international media platforms such as CNN, the BBC, Bloomberg, Top Gear, Daily Mail, Beverly Hills Magazine, Yahoo!, CNBC and more.

The Supercop Car was also voted 'Car of the Year' and 'Best Supercar' at the Middle East Motor Awards â€“ and traffic violations in Dubai were reduced by 5.3%.

This case study describes how Peru's Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (MINCETUR) used a national search to find the kindest Peruvian to boost tourism and encourage return visits to the country. View Summary

This case study describes how Peru's Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (MINCETUR) used a national search to find the kindest Peruvian to boost tourism and encourage return visits to the country.

Every year, millions of tourists visit Peru but they only come once; MINCETUR wanted to find a strong incentive to encourage tourists to come back and recommend other people to visit Peru.

The campaign took the form of a national search to find 'the kindest Peruvian', and was used as a communication vehicle to encourage citizens to become excellent hosts, turning every Peruvian into a media touchpoint.

Incognito tourists could test Peruvians' kindness by asking for the addresses of the best places to eat and the best waves to surf, and people could nominate candidates at the campaign website and find a map with the 'kindest' places to visit.

The campaign resulted in more than 138,000 website visits in just over two months, 25,000+ votes were received, along with 204,000+ video views via MINCETUR YouTube channel.

This event report shows how The Cosmopolitan Hotel of Las Vegas and United Airlines created a new media channel to connect with flyers travelling to the city. View Summary

This event report shows how The Cosmopolitan Hotel of Las Vegas and United Airlines created a new media channel to connect with flyers travelling to the city.

While The Cosmopolitan boasted strong occupancy levels and brand awareness, it wanted to attract more visitors to it property for gaming, dining and events.

To achieve that goal, it created a set of mock "playing cards" providing offers, deals and useful information for passengers flying to Las Vegas on domestic United flights.

By meeting the needs of visitors to Las Vegas, many of which conducted little pre-planning, in a context where its competitors were not represented, the resort was able to meet its core brand objectives.

This event report looks at how a CIO worked closely with his CMO colleague to develop Tourism Australia's digital marketing, effectively repositioning IT as an enabler for marketing. View Summary

This event report looks at how a CIO worked closely with his CMO colleague to develop Tourism Australia's digital marketing, effectively repositioning IT as an enabler for marketing.

The two worked through a long-term program that has seen the organisation move from a basic website, through mobile optimisation and digital integration to the embrace of all things social.

The next step is to use technology to create real-time marketing that offers personalised content based on a user's location and to make smarter use of data that it can share with partners such as airlines.

This case study sets out how Failte Ireland, Ireland's tourism body, undertook it's largest ever tourism initiative, The Gathering, after a colossal 23% drop in tourism.

The objective was to encourage active participation of Irish citizens, communities and businesses to work collectively to connect with the 70m Irish global diaspora by sending them an invitation or reason to visit Ireland during 2013.

It needed to go from zero awareness to a full blown social movement at a time when people had no belief in the Irish government and the economy was bankrupt.

This required creating a shift in five different levels: behavioural, cultural, financial, trust and investment.

The social and digital media-led campaign was supported by digital, print, a six-week primetime TV and VOD series, a radio partnership, mobile, search and OOH.

This emotive, grassroots strategy engaged 35% of the population equating to a 40% conversion from awareness to participation, and the revenue target was exceeded.

11

How Tourism Australia forged a strong collaboration between marketing and IT

Includes video content

Recommended by Warc editors

Trends

Best Practice

Andrea Sophocleous, Event Reports, Mumbrella360, June 2014

This event report explores the relationship between IT and marketing at Tourism Australia, the government organisation, and how this is enabling it to move to an earned and owned media strategy. View Summary

This event report explores the relationship between IT and marketing at Tourism Australia, the government organisation, and how this is enabling it to move to an earned and owned media strategy.

Digital is central to the organisation's market as it seeks to cover 26 countries and cannot afford paid ads in all of them.

Collaboration between the two has driven the streamlining of its websites and allowed an online publishing strategy based on trending topics.

The quality of data collected online has been improved and is being used as part of the organisation's content strategy and in developing partnerships.

As attention turns to mobile marketing the partnership between these two functions is even more important.

12

Rhaetische Bahn: Webwandern (Online hiking)

Includes video content

Recommended by Warc editors

Trends

Best Practice

Cannes Creative Lions, Creative Effectiveness Lions, 2014

This case study describes an online campaign by the Rhaetian Railway (RhB) in Switzerland, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, based around a virtual tour of the 131km hiking route that the railway runs along. View Summary

This case study describes an online campaign by the Rhaetian Railway (RhB) in Switzerland, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, based around a virtual tour of the 131km hiking route that the railway runs along.

The objective was to raise awareness of the hiking route and the package options for hikers to use the railway as they made their way along the route.

The campaign's internet-based strategy reflected the web's importance to the target audience: 2.97m German-speaking Swiss who hike every year and use the internet as their planning tool.

The Webwandern ("online hiking") website hosted an interactive, 38-hour, first-person-perspective film of the hiking route, promoted by PR, social seeding and online banners.

Tourism package sales grew 330% compared to the same period prior to launch.

13

Michigan Economic Development Corporation: Pure Michigan

Includes video content

Recommended by Warc editors

Trends

Best Practice

Effie Worldwide, Bronze, North America Effies 2014

This case study describes how the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, a tourism organisation, marketed the state across the US as a vacation experience. View Summary

This case study describes how the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, a tourism organisation, marketed the state across the US as a vacation experience.

Michigan state had suffered with the decline of its auto-industry and economic recession, particularly in its largest city of Detroit, and faced continuing negative press coverage.

Storytelling through TV and radio ads brought to life the richness of the state's offering, explaining how a visit could remove people from their 'ordinary' and emphasising the natural environment.

Visitor numbers, visitor spend and tax revenue all increased, and a large number of partners joined the organisation and its umbrella branding.

14

Aruba Tourism Authority: Many Happy Returners

Includes video content

Recommended by Warc editors

Trends

Best Practice

Effie Worldwide, Bronze, North America Effies 2014

This case study demonstrates how Aruba, a Caribbean country highly dependent on tourism, reversed a decline in visitors from the US by placing visitors who returned most often at the front of its campaign. View Summary

This case study demonstrates how Aruba, a Caribbean country highly dependent on tourism, reversed a decline in visitors from the US by placing visitors who returned most often at the front of its campaign.

Aruba is the second-most tourism-dependent country in the world but spends less in media than other Caribbean destinations and had seen no growth in visitors from the US, its most important market.

Research showed that the majority of travellers depend on recommendations from credible third parties and that Aruba consistently ranked among the highest in the Caribbean in repeat visitation.

Aruba departed from the advertising convention of showcasing its beauty and instead involved its loyal visitors - "Happy Returners" - in telling their real stories of why they kept coming back.

This campaign was supported by a PR event, held in New York on Valentine's Day, which received national coverage.

US visitation grew against a decline in the Caribbean overall.

15

Mobile meets travel in Asia: Tips from Expedia, Starwood and Resorts World Sentosa

Includes video content

Recommended by Warc editors

Trends

Best Practice

Low Lai Chow, Event Reports, eTail Asia, March 2014

This event report shows how three travel brands are using mobile to reach consumers in Asia. Expedia, best-known as a bookings platform, is seeking to expand its remit by tailoring its website for different devices and providing an app that offers various services beyond simply securing tickets and hotel reservations. View Summary

This event report shows how three travel brands are using mobile to reach consumers in Asia. Expedia, best-known as a bookings platform, is seeking to expand its remit by tailoring its website for different devices and providing an app that offers various services beyond simply securing tickets and hotel reservations. Starwood Asia Pacific is similarly attempting to deliver "basic services" on its website, and ensure its app promises value and utility for its loyalty-programme members. Resorts World Sentosa, which runs a huge resort to the south of Singapore, has moved somewhat slower in this space thus far, but is now exploring how its website and app can serve customers before, during and after they visit.

16

Tourism Australia: 101 Things to Love About Australia

Includes video content

Recommended by Warc editors

Trends

Best Practice

Frederick Tong, Warc Prize for Social Strategy, Entrant, 2014

This case study describes how a social media competition was used to promote Australia as a tourist destination to people in Singapore. View Summary

This case study describes how a social media competition was used to promote Australia as a tourist destination to people in Singapore.

Australia had experienced a decline in visitors from Singapore, and wanted to reverse this.

Research found the decline was partly due to Australia's lack of neighbours, preventing it being part of a multi-destination holiday so the campaign emphasised the range of activities and experiences possible in Australia, including some lesser-known ones.

The campaign ran on the organisation's Facebook page, using content to communicate the experiences available, and a competition for a free holiday of a lifetime was promoted on the page and on radio.

This case study explains how the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC) crowdsourced video material in order to create a social film that invited people around the world to explore Canada. View Summary

This case study explains how the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC) crowdsourced video material in order to create a social film that invited people around the world to explore Canada.

Domestic travel within Canada was on the decline, so not only were domestic revenues at risk, but with fewer Canadians travelling generally there were less people spreading the word around the world about what an amazing place Canada is to visit.

In order to reignite Canadians' pride for their country and turn them into advocates and ambassadors, people were invited to share their experiences of their friends and communities.

The project generated 65 hours of footage in thousands of videos, increased the CTC's social media following and gained extensive earned media coverage.

The final campaign video gained over 3.6m views, and social media posts gained over 2.6m engagements creating a reach of 37m.

This case study describes a campaign by Tourism New Zealand, the government funded organisation, to encourage gay Australians to consider the country as a wedding destination. View Summary

This case study describes a campaign by Tourism New Zealand, the government funded organisation, to encourage gay Australians to consider the country as a wedding destination.

The campaign started on the day New Zealand legalised same-sex marriage with the posting of a new logo on the organisation's Facebook page.

This was followed by striking images of places to get married in new Zealand, and by the end of that first day a 'Make History' campaign had been started.

This included a partnership with an Australian newspaper and a competition to find a couple to be the first to get married.

The original post reached 99,000 Australians and the Facebook page gained over 7,500 followers.

This also led to a 513% increase in gay foreign residents getting married in New Zealand.

20

How Melbourne changed tack and sold its charms on a global stage

Includes video content

Recommended by Warc editors

Trends

Best Practice

Andrea Sophocleous, Event Reports, ad:tech Australia, March 2014

This event report describes a digital destination marketing campaign by Tourism Victoria, an Australian tourism board, for Melbourne, its most popular city. View Summary

This event report describes a digital destination marketing campaign by Tourism Victoria, an Australian tourism board, for Melbourne, its most popular city. Melbourne continued to be the most popular destination for short breaks in Australia, but was losing its point-of-difference as other cities 'caught up' with what it had to offer. The city did not have particular landmarks as attractions, and instead was popular for lots of small experiences and exploration. A fully integrated digital campaign was developed - 'The Remote Control Tourist' - whereby four people were fitted with cameras and fed requests from participants online. Over several days these tourists showed viewers what the city had to offer in a live video feed. Content was also published on YouTube and Instagram, and interaction was enabled through Facebook, Twitter and a microsite. The campaign generated 151 million unique media impressions globally, and received over 143,000 unique microsite visitors.

This article discusses the nature of India's soft power, arguing that it is a type of national branding, and compares it to China. View Summary

This article discusses the nature of India's soft power, arguing that it is a type of national branding, and compares it to China. India's soft power is based on its culture - Bollywood films and Indian cuisine - and its business success around the world. When compared with China, it is argued that India benefits from its democracy and free press, whilst China suffers from a lack of democracy and issues surrounding Tibet. India could improve its soft power by telling its story more effectively and investing more in promoting this abroad.

22

The Philippines: It's More Fun In The Philippines

Includes video content

Recommended by Warc editors

Trends

Best Practice

Cristina Buenaventura, Warc Prize for Social Strategy, Bronze, 2014

This case study describes a campaign the Philippines Department of Tourism (DoT) which turned Filipinos into both inspiration and media channel for its campaign. View Summary

This case study describes a campaign the Philippines Department of Tourism (DoT) which turned Filipinos into both inspiration and media channel for its campaign.

Capturing the idea that the Filipino people enhance the experience of any tourist a few basic ads were created, playfully putting straplines describing everyday things over breath-taking images of the country.

These were published on social media, and templates provided for people to make and share their own versions.

The campaign became the number one global trend on Twitter just two days after its launch, with the slogan mentioned online once every minute.

The Philippines achieved a 231% increase in Google hits for the country, while tourism arrivals hit an all-time high of 4.3 million; bringing in more additional visitors than the nearby country destination of Malaysia, despite having just one-eighth of their marketing budget.

This case study describes how the Singapore Tourism Board created a campaign to promote and recognise good service. View Summary

This case study describes how the Singapore Tourism Board created a campaign to promote and recognise good service.

Research had found that people had poor perceptions of service in Singapore, and did not often express recognition of good service.

A two week event was planned, with toolkits distributed to businesses and customers invited to share their good experiences on Instagram.

In two weeks 6,000 recognitions were collected, amounting to 4m impressions.

Additional earned media coverage was generated on radio and TV, and post-campaign research found that participating businesses had experienced a 25% increase in revenue during the campaign and that customers felt happier with service.

24

Preston City Council: It's (on in) Preston

Includes video content

Recommended by Warc editors

Trends

Best Practice

Design Business Association, Bronze, Design Effectiveness Awards 2014

This case study describes how Preston Guild, a festival held every 20 years in Preston, UK, used an original design concept to attract visitors, increase the Guild's profile and engagement with the media, and improve perception of Preston as a great place to live and work in. View Summary

This case study describes how Preston Guild, a festival held every 20 years in Preston, UK, used an original design concept to attract visitors, increase the Guild's profile and engagement with the media, and improve perception of Preston as a great place to live and work in.

The Guild Festival was composed of a number of events taking place in 2012, and incorporated existing annual community events to achieve added value from the Guild ethos and profile.

The chosen theme was 'Innovation and Creativity' and the design concept was 'It's (on in) Preston'.

The design delivered flexibility and was simple to implement in all situations, which meant it could be used consistently to create strong brand awareness.

The Guild delivered an increase in footfall of 380% above target and a 428% increase in spend from regional, national and international visitors.

Social media are becoming increasingly important for consumer decisions. This holds true in particular for vacation decision-making, as an example of a high-involvement decision. View Summary

Social media are becoming increasingly important for consumer decisions. This holds true in particular for vacation decision-making, as an example of a high-involvement decision. The research focuses upon the relation between the information people search regarding aspects or properties of choice options and the types of social media used for finding it. The social media classification framework used is based on two dimensions: first, domain-specific social media versus domain-independent social media; second, large opportunities for self-disclosure versus limited or no opportunities for self-disclosure. Based on this framework, predictions are made about the relation between social media used and information sought. It was found that domain-specific social media with limited opportunities for self-disclosure, like Tripadvisor, are more frequently used for search-determined sub-decisions than for experience-determined sub-decisions. For domain-independent social media with large opportunities for self-disclosure, like Twitter and Facebook, it was found that they are used with equal frequency for both types of sub-decision. These findings are relevant for multichannel management in marketing. As regards the valence of the information obtained from different social media, we found a preponderant use of positive/mixed messages and comments, and almost no use of negative information. A practical implication of this finding is that ‘webcare’ should be focused less on complaints and more on leveraging positive aspects that are reported in social media for choices that have comparable characteristics, such as vacations. If a relatively large number of aspects play a role in a product choice process, tracking and use of positive information should be emphasised, while negative experiences should be more important for products characterised by a very limited number of relevant product choice aspects.